Ben Morton (Tangney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It was great to celebrate Australia Day this year. I celebrated Australia Day with a fantastic Australia Day breakfast at the Rossmoyne Shelley foreshore, a breakfast put on by the Rossmoyne Rotary Club. I also made it to a barbecue run by the Lions Club of Bull Creek, the City of Melville and volunteers from the SES and Neighbourhood Watch. There were citizenship ceremonies at both events, and my sincere congratulations go to those new Australians. It was great to see the community coming together to celebrate and to welcome them into our community.

It was, however, disappointing to see families in my electorate and the neighbouring electorate of Fremantle missing out on Australia Day fireworks and celebrations due to pressure from left-wing activists, who ensured the Australia Day celebrations in Fremantle would not go ahead. This vocal minority is set on divisive actions on a day that should be about unity. This contrasts with the fantastic celebrations in the city of Perth, which were inclusive and respectful of our First Australians. The city of Perth brought together 300,000 people to celebrate with family events, including the Indigenous focused Birak concert at the Supreme Court gardens, full of music, dance, art and food. The Birak concert celebrated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and communities, recognising our diversity and celebrating our unity. That's exactly the Australia Day that we need.